


We Need Your Help

by odinstark



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order (Video Game)
Genre: BAMF Cal Kestis, BAMF Finn (Star Wars), BAMF Leia Organa, BAMF Luke Skywalker, Bogano (Star Wars), Cal Kestis and his Orange Lightsaber, D'Qar, Dathomir (Star Wars), F/F, F/M, Finn (Star Wars) has a Pink Lightsaber, Finn and Rey (Star Wars) Are Related, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Dyad (Star Wars), Force Ghost Obi-Wan Kenobi, Force Ghost(s), Force-Sensitive Han Solo, Force-Sensitive Poe Dameron, Han Solo Lives, Jedi Finn (Star Wars), Jedi Rey (Star Wars), Jedi Training (Star Wars), Kashyyyk, Lightsaber Battles, M/M, Mutual Pining, Not Canon Compliant, Post-Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order, Post-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Psychometry, Rose Tico Deserved Better, Sharing a Bed, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Star Wars: The Last Jedi Fix-It, That's Not How The Force Works, The First Order Sucks, Uncle Luke Skywalker, Zeffo (Star Wars)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-08
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-23 02:30:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23070901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/odinstark/pseuds/odinstark
Summary: Even after the successful recruitment of Luke Skywalker into the ranks of the RESISTANCE, General Organa fears they need more help than originally planned. And with the growing force of both Rey and Finn's FORCE CONNECTION, some aspects of their powers are beyond Master Skywalker's experience. Enter Han Solo with a suggestion that just might be crazy enough to work.Poe Dameron, Leader of Black Squadron, might just have his toughest challenge of late, trying to locate a planet that of which its location is only know to handful of people, and most of those people are dead. But with his droid companion, an ex-scavenger, first order defector, a mechanic and a galactic legend, he can accomplish anything. BOGANO awaits their arrival, its occupants currently unaware of their imminent disruption.Even after thirty years, the grief and pain of living through two wars still hurts deep. Secluded on a far away planet Cal Kestis lives out the rest of his days unaware of the war raging in the rest of the galaxy. The FIRST ORDER sounds like a cheap knock off of the horror the Empire brought, but when he is informed of the damage they have caused, what will he choose to do?
Relationships: BB-8 & BD-1, BD-1 & Cal Kestis, BD-1 & Rey (Star Wars), Cal Kestis & Luke Skywalker, Cal Kestis & Merrin, Cal Kestis & Rey, Cere Junda & Cal Kestis, Finn & Cal Kestis, Finn & Jannah (Star Wars), Finn & Rey (Star Wars), Finn & Rose Tico, Greez Dritus & Cal Kestis, Leia Organa & Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa/Han Solo, Luke Skywalker & Han Solo, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Cal Kestis, Poe Dameron & Cal Kestis, Poe Dameron & Rey, Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey/Rose Tico
Comments: 10
Kudos: 66





	1. D'QAR 1.1

**THE DAY WAS HOT BUT THE BREEZE WAS COOL ENOUGH TO SWAY THE PLANETS OCCUPANTS OUTSIDE TO ENJOY THE SUN.**

In a small clearing behind the base, two young adults sparred with each other under the blazing sun rays. Blue saber blade clashed with pink and sparks of purple fizzled to the ground. The dirt was loose under their boots, and it flew up as they dashed around the clearing, dodging and weaving against their opponents oncoming attacks. The man favoured defensive moves but he did not let the woman back him into any corner, he stood his ground, occasionally he lost a foot or two but gained back it as soon as he lost it.

The brunette leaped into the air and swiped at the man underneath her, but her lightsaber grazed off of his as he blocked just in time, a rolled to the side as she landed in a crouch. The two quickly got up and faced each other, blades raised to strike again when a high pitch wolf whistle interrupted their training.

"Nice dodge, Buddy! Rey you gotta teach me how to kick like that sometime!" claps followed the glowing praise from one Poe Dameron, who walked towards them, carrying two bottle of water, of which he threw to the sweating Jedis in training.

"Thanks," Rey replied, immediately downing the water as Finn asked, "What's up?"

"The General wants to see us, I'm not sure about what, but Luke's there so I'm guessing it's important."

The group began to walk back to base together as Rey joked, "I don't know how you can call him Luke to us, much less his face. It feels illegal to even think about that."

"Well he's kinda like my uncle so I think it would be even weirder for me to call him Master Skywalker like you two do," Poe shrugged at the two.

"Hey don't look at me like that, I didn't know the guy was real until like six months ago!" Finn replied defensively with his hands up, but with a smirk on his lips. The three laugh until they reach the hanger doors.

**"SOMETHING'S COMING," AN AGED VOICE SPOKE, AS ROUGH FINGERS STROKED DOWN THE EDGE OF A SMOOTH CRYSTAL.**

"Hm?" a man replied, his back turned to the woman sitting at the table, and continued to stir the pot in front of him, "You always say that at this time of year."

"Perhaps," she replied, "But this year, I truly think it so."

The man scoffed and hauled the pot over to the table and began spooning a purple-ish stew into wooden bowls,

"You're always so pessimistic, could it hurt you to think positively for once?"

"Fine, do not believe me. But the trouble will be on your behind, Kestis, I promise you that," the woman took a bite of her stew and raised a serious eyebrow at him, but her lips wobbled in amusement as the man laughed softly at her. 

**HOURS EARLIER, TWO SIBLINGS MET IN AN EMPTY ROOM, TO DISCUSS TWO VERY SPECIAL INDIVIDUALS AND AN ORGANISATION THAT SEEKS TO DESTROY THEM AND THE REST OF THE GALAXY ALONGSIDE THEM**.

The room was cool, a stark contrast to the dry heat of outside. The greying brother and sister sat across from each other, silently brooding over their conversation.

"What should we do?" Luke finally broke the silence, and Leia looked up to meet his gaze.

"For once? I'm at a loss. You are an incredible Jedi Luke, but you had to learn it by yourself for the most part. There's some parts of the Force I don't know about and you barely understand. We need someone who does. But no one like that exists anymore."

Luke grumbled and settled his head into his hand,

"Never a time that I miss Uncle Ben more than now."

Leia smiled and reached over and patted her brother's arm reassuringly,

"I'm sure he misses you too."

The door creaked open and broke the moment. In came a man with three mugs of Caf in his arms and a roll stuffed into his mouth. He pushed a cup to each two Luke and Leia each before sitting down. The two looked at him incredulously and he raised his eyebrows in question. 

"What? What did I miss?" he spoke through the bread in his mouth, spitting crumbs everywhere.

"Nothing, nothing Han, don't worry," Luke answered and laughed softly behind his hand as the man continued to stare at the two with confusion.

"We were just talking about how we needed someone to help teach Rey and Finn, things about the Force he doesn't know. But there are no Jedi anymore, no one to turn to for guidance."

"Hmm," Ham grumbled for a second before taking a sip of Caf. He placed the mug down and swallowed.

"What about the one during the War?"

"What?" Leia asked, and turned to her husband, "What do you mean?"

"The one during the War. Red hair. Kes..Kestrel...Kestis! I remember him now, a snake at cards. There was him and that grey haired woman, and a pilot and another that was good with a blaster. They all seemed sorta forcey...He had a lightsaber. He's probably still kicking it somewhere, he left the war alive," he went back to his drink, looking down at the table at the data pad that was left open.

The room dropped to dead silence, so quiet you could've heard a pin drop after Han stopped speaking.

"Han Solo..." Leia began, in a string tone, as the man's head shot up.

"What? What did I do?" he answered in confusion.

"You kriffing GENIUS!" Luke finished, bouncing out of his chair, and began to dig through map files.

A shadow passed the window near the room and Leia shot out of her chair to the door and grabbed the man outside.

"Poe, I need you to get Rey and Finn. I have an important mission for the three of you. I want you to report back here ASAP, got it?"

"Yes ma'am!" Poe nodded and dashed down the corridor.

"What did I say?" Han asked to an unhearing room.


	2. D'QAR 1.2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our heroes put thoughts to holopad, and plans form quickly. The search is on for our missing Jedi, but where to start? There's a whole galaxy out there and little time. Let's hope the FORCE works this way, or the whole universe is in danger.
> 
> Kylo Ren is up to something as usual, on his own quest to find something for himself. Let's hope it's not what the Resistance is searching for, and if it is, they find it first.
> 
> Avengers Assemble! Shit wait wrong universe.

**THEY PILED INTO THE MEETING ROOM, WITH DUST STILL COATING THEIR BOOTS, SWEAT STILL WET IN THEIR HAIR.**

Rey and Poe claimed the last two remaining chairs that weren't piled high with mechanical parts or empty plates and mugs. Finn perched on the arm of Poe's chair with his feet tucked in beside Rey's hips on her chair. Rey turned to her right to stick her tongue out at him momentarily when his boots accidently nudged her thigh. Poe leaned forward and knocked into his friend jokingly for blocking his view, to which Finn replied with a subtle eye roll before leaning to the side so Poe could see the legends at the head of the table.

Leia let a fond smile grace her lips for a second before she cleared her face and became the serious General most of the base knew her as. She gestured at R2D2 who was to her brother's left and he began to project a hologram of a man with a rough beard, notably red hair (even if the projection didn't really show it) and a blazing double bladed lightsaber. The projection was slightly blurred, as though the image had been taken as he was in motion. The younger trio looked questioningly at the elders and the two Jedi-In-Training thumbed their lightsaber hilts, in preparation for the news the man turned out to be a threat.

"This...is Cal Kestis. He's a Jedi, and a powerful one at that, who survived the Clone Wars and he fought with us for the Rebellion."

"Wait I think I remember him.." Poe studied the hologram that crackled in the air closely but grumbled as he heard Rey fake-cough and mutter 'old man'.

"Yes, you probably do. He stayed around for a while after the War finished, I remember your father and he were a formidable duo to play cards against."

"Too right.." Han gruffed behind his hand but looked innocent when Leia turned her gaze on him.

" _Anyway_ , he left a year or two after everything was over. Enough to help with clean up. But he went, like others did. And no one has heard from him since."

"Okay..." Rey thought out loud, "Why are you telling us this? He hasn't been spotted with the First Order has he?"

"No, no he hasn't," Luke replied, speaking for the first time since the trio enter the room,

"But we need to find him."

**A RED BLADE CUT THROUGH THE CEILING, SENDING SPARKS FLYING AND A DARK FIGURE DESCENDED, LANDING IN A CROUCH. HIS HELMET COVERED THE STILL BURNING PURPLE SCAR ACROSS HIS FACE.**

He hung his lightsaber back on his waist, and began to walk the corridor, his cloak hovering an inch over the water that consumed the hallway. The remnants of droids and security bots were stacked against the walls, pushed there by the force of a tide that no longer existed. 

He walked further down the darkened corridor, not giving a second look to a fizzing droid, with an Imperial saber stuck through its motors, unable to move. He didn't even have enough mercy to end its never ending struggle, he let it suffer.

He came to a fork in the hallway. One led down, into the dark and into ten foot of water. The second let the stars light shine through endless windows. He took a pieced of melted plastic from his cloaks pocket and held it tight in his gloved hand. He focused on the energy radiating from it, trying to steal the power from his weakening connection with a woman half away across the galaxy from him. It worked for a second, he caught a glimmer of a scene, a room flooded with deep orange light, steel floors and a harsh red blade in his hand, more solid than his would ever be. But then he lost it. The connection snapped, and he was ejected from the memory and stumbled back a couple of steps.

But it was enough. He took a breath in through his crackling mask and headed down the glass corridor. 

The empty shells of Stormtrooper armours bumped against the glass, pushed by ripples in the black water created by creatures that hid in the dark. He watched a suit slip down the side of the window and plummet to the sand below. He continued on.

He finally found the deep orange room, now a dark blue. He had to force a strip of metal from the walls to act as a bridge to enter the empty cavern. As he entered, his boots crushed already broken glass underneath him as he strutted forward, not letting himself shudder as he stared down the torture station in the middle of the hall.

To his left, a pile of cloth lay obscuring whatever created the lumps underneath it. A helmet lay a foot away, with a burn mark straight up the back of it. He tore off his own helmet and tossed it aside before he grabbed it from the steel floor and held it in his hands. He pressed his forehead against the icy cold metal and glared through the red visor, into the eye sockets of the skull still inside.

He reached again across the universe, searching for the connection. He needed to see what happened here. He needed to know. He couldn't feel her, so he reached further and further until he felt her soul snatch itself away from his grasp. He chased her around the void, seeing swirling blacks and reds and greys until felt a searing blue light jam itself through his arm. 

He was forcefully pushed out of the connection this time and he fell the floor with a gasp. His leather glove went to his shoulder and came back red and burning. He jumped to his feet with a yell and brandished his hand at the threat, but he was alone in the room. Except for the helmet, clutched in his left hand.

He wrestled his lightsaber off his belt and stared down at the helmet before he threw it high in the air, igniting his saber as it came crashing down in front of him, slicing it straight in half. A glowing jawbone bounced out of its helmet casing and rattled against the ground, unheard as Kylo Ren screamed until his throat was hoarse.

The silent room was no longer silent. A lightsaber hummed, red and spitting. 

**THE MILLENNIUM FALCON WAS STACKED WITH WHAT SUPPLIES COULD BE SPARED, THE ONLY THING IT WAS MISSING, WAS IT'S CREW.**

"Finn, Rey, meet Rose Tico, she's an excellent engineer, probably one of the best in the galaxy and she will be joining us as we track down our elusive Jedi," Poe introduced the woman at his side, who was short but not easily intimidated, so her aura made her stand as tall as Poe to Rey.

"Hey! Nice to meet you." Finn greeted her with a smile and a hand shake, as she returned his greeting, before Poe dragged him off inside the ship.

"So," Rey smirked, after she had said her own 'hellos!', "What bet did you lose to get stuck with search duties?" 

"Actually," Rose countered, looking into Rey's eyes for a moment before blushing, 

"I volunteered."

"Oh?" 

"Yeah, wanted to do my part..." she mumbled in response, looking down, missing Rey's look of respect,

"Anyway, General Skywalker should be here any minute and I want to do last minute checks on this junker."

Rey giggled, as Rose sped up the ramp, following behind her, "Better not let Han hear you say that."

The engineer looked back as she continued to walk up, and answered her with a smile, 

"Yeah, you're probably right."

Fifteen minutes later, Luke entered the pilots cabin and squeezed into a seat behind Rey,

"Chair's a lot smaller than I remember."

"Things change Luke, you especially of all," Poe snarked, but not unkindly, as he finished setting up the preflight protocols. 

"Oi!" Luke grumbled, but a smile was evident on his lips, 

"You should be glad Kes isn't here or I'd be having words."

Finn laughed, and turned to look at the Jedi beside him,

"You say that as though he is still a child."

His mentor raised an eyebrow at him, 

"Isn't he?" 

Rey laughed as she fiddled with the co-ordinates, mixing with Finn's own chuckle and Poe was almost sure he could hear Rose giggling in the matience cupboard down the hall. 

"Okay, alright that's enough, I get it, it's bully Poe day. But sober up crew, we have a Jedi to find."

"Aye Aye Captain!" Finn replied, patting his shoulder from behind and Poe smiled, his good mood boosted even further. 

"Wayward to Kashyyyk!" Rey announced, carrying on the pirate theme, as Luke sighed into his hand. 

What had he gotten himself into? 


	3. KASHYYYK 1.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first stop on their adventure to find their missing Jedi, the planet of Kashyyyk, home of the Wookies. A tip from Chewie had them speeding lightyears away to meet with Tarfful, an elder Cheiftan, who helped the Jedi many years ago on his own quest. What it was is still unknown but it shouldn't be too hard to follow the trail. Right?
> 
> A quiet moment passes on Bogano. A dragon snoozes, a light breeze blows grass blades against two grave stones. A man shares a talk with a ghost.

**THE SHIP BROKE THE ATMOSPHERE WITH A CRACK AND IT SOARED OVER THE TREES, ITS CREW SEARCHING FOR AN IMPERIAL REFINERY.**

It came into view a moment later and the Falcon landed on an empty docking yard. There were a few empty fuel canisters and crates, but the landing area was empty as far as their eyes could see.

Until they disembarked and Poe's eyes narrowed into something in the distance.

"Holy shit that's an AT-AT..." Finn's head snapped around and he dashed to Poe's side.

"I need...I need to see it," the man mumbled. Poe's gentle look reassured him when he realised he had spoke out loud.

Luke and Rose stayed near the ship as the trip and BB-8 approached the decrepit transport. They approached slowly, their boots crunching over the dead leaves on the tarmac. Finn's fingers hesitated an inch away from the the window, which vines had mostly consumed. Rey lay a comforting hand on his shoulder and Finn felt his confidence surge.

He placed his hand against the AT-AT and let his emotions flow through his palm.

He saw a lake, the legs of the transport tangled with vines dripping water. He felt moss against his finger tips and smelt perfumed flowers. He felt the darkness inside, even darker than the hallways on Starkiller were at night. A blinking red light. He saw people die on a cold steel floor. A glowing orange saber cutting through white plastic. A droid whistles and he feels the transport rumble under his fingers as blasters screamed outside. He felt fire licking against his skin.

Then he gasped and snapped his hand back from the metal wall. He didn't feel himself drop to the ground. 

"You okay?" Finn blinked and Poe came into view. He was sitting against a crate and Poe was crouched in front of him, holding one of his hands in his own in a reassuring manner,

"You spaced out for a moment."

"He was here," Finn replied and blinked repeatedly to remove the glow of the flames from behind his eyes, and let his hand slip out of Poe's grasp, 

"He was here."

"Who? Kestis? Wait.... _He_ trashed this?" he looked between his friend in front of him and the girl sitting on the crate behind him. 

"He was here," Rey confirmed, speaking for the first time. She handed Finn a flask of cool water and helped him to his feet,

"I...We felt it."

"Through the transport. I saw... A fight. A battle. I saw him steal this to help... Someone. Things from outside were kind of blurry to me...Rey?"

"Same for me...But who ever he was helping..They must be good, right?"

"Kashyyyk did have a group of freedom fighters helping the Wookies against the Empire around that time...Maybe that was who?" Poe added helpfully as they walked back towards the Falcon, and Finn finished the water in the canteen. It was hot on this planet, not as bad as Jakku but still pretty warm.

"Probably."

Luke offered the three a questioning eyebrow but Rey brushed her Master's inquiry off with a denying look.

"Kestis was here," she offered as consolation, "Seems like Chewie was right. He helped liberate the Wookies from the refinery."

"Which means.." Luke replied as they headed into the maw of the jungle,

"Tarfful might know something."

They managed to get an acre or so into the trees when they heard a rumble in the leaves. They hesitated for a moment but continued to walk until the rustle got closer. Three of them pulled out their sabers but didn't ignite them as they faced out in a circle, Finn taking forward, Rey going left and Luke right. Poe aimed his blaster towards the treeline, covering their six. Rose and BB-8 both produced their tasers, brandishing them in the weak spots of their circle.

"Who's there?" Poe yelled and the rustled grew louder and louder until they stopped.

A group of Wookies emerged from the trees in front of Finn and the group turned to face them. Along with them were three humans, an older lady with a staff, a young man and a kid, around thirteen. 

"What is your business on our planet?" the old woman asked, but her tone was powerful, her grip tightening around her staff.

"We're looking for Cheiftan Tarfful...We need information from him," Luke answered, stroking his thumb against his saber's hilt.

"Tarfful does not take meeting with strangers," the young man raised his rifle higher up to his chest as the Wookies restlessly grumbled behind him.

"Yoshua, do not be hasty. What is it you wish to learn from him?" the elder replied and she stepped closer to the group.

"We're looking for someone. We're...We're looking for Cal Kestis? We were told he has been here...We need to find him," Rey offered, stepping closer too, to extend an offer of trust.

The old lady froze, and her staff dropped to the grass. The clearing became dead silent. 

The young man scowled further but the Wookies became almost excited behind him. The child looked between their group and their own, before they dropped down to the grass, to pick up the intricately carved cane.

"Nana," the teen nudged her, and handed her staff her back,

"Are they Jedi?"

She turned to the child and smiled, with the aura of the calm after a long storm,

"Yes baby, they are."

She looks up again and Finn notices her eyes are glassy with tears but she's still smiling.

"Follow me."

**IT WAS EARLY MORNING. MIST STILL CLUNG TO THE GRASS, BUT THE SUN'S HEAT WARMED HIS SKIN AS HE WALKED OUTSIDE.**

He had a flask of some sort of steaming dark green liquid and it smelt earthly. The man made his way towards the base of the vault, where two black headstones were sunk into the saturated dirt. He sat on the flat stone beside it and took a deep drink from his flask.

His eyes traced the engravings slowly, like he did everytime he visited. 

_**G R E E Z D R I T U S** _

_**C E R E J U N D A** _

"I miss being able to talk to him," he spoke aloud, placing his flask beside him in the stone.

"I never thought I'd hear a day were you missed hearing Greez's ramblings," a lilting voice nested from behind him.

"Neither did I. But it's been too long...I've started to listen to old logs from the Mantis so I don't forget what he sounds like."

"I'd like to hear them soon too, if you don't mind...It's hard to cling to things that the Force doesn't deem important..." Cere walked around and sat on the grass in front of him, her grey hair braided against the side of her head, ending half way down her chest, resting against her dark, wraparound tunic.

"Of course....Merrin told me to say hello, she's busy doing some Magick thing so she couldn't spare the time to come see you today," Cal offered a nod to her, but continued to state down at the grass. 

"That's fine, I knew not to break her away from that then, I certainly know the same now..." the ghost smiled but quickly grew sober when she realised Cal's mood,

"What's wrong?"

The greying man sighed, 

"Merrin thinks something's coming."

"She always says ominous things like that...What's different this time?" she questioned, placing a hand on Cal's knee, feeling comfort flow through him in the Force.

"This time...I don't know...I think I agree. Something feels...off in the galaxy and it has for a while but I only put two and two together when she said that last night..."

"And what are you gonna do about it?"

Cal was silent for a moment as he gazed up at the Zeffo structure, feeling the breeze blow through his hair, he sighed.

"I don't know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe I didn't make it clear enough but both Greez and Cere are dead. Cere is a force ghost in this chapter, I have this running theory that even though she cut herself of from the Force while she living, it gave her the chance to come back when she died. She doesn't have to be asked to appear she just does.
> 
> Whether or not she's tied to Bogano only, remains to be seen. There is no one rule for Force ghosts.


	4. KASHYYYK 1.2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The planet of the Wookies is a place of rich history, a home of resistance and rebellion. Young ones, come, gather round to hear the tales of the Jedi, and those who came before and after.
> 
> Rey finds out more about the force and about herself in a way she could not have imagined. From an old woman in a forest, by the campfire on a journey to find a forgotten Jedi.
> 
> Finn makes a friend and learns his future, through his palms and a bundle of wooden discs. He's surprised but who wouldn't be when they find out what he does?
> 
> Poe finds himself in a slight pickle. A cabin for the night, deep in the Kashyyyk forest. Five people. Three bedrooms. Four beds. Looks like two people have to share. Oh boy.

**"MY NAME IS MARI KOSAN," THE ELDERLY WOMAN TOLD THEM AS THEY WALKED DEEPER INTO THE TREES,** **"I KNOW SOME OF YOU ARE JEDI BUT WHO ARE YOU, REALLY?"**

"My name is Rey." 

"I'm Rose. Rose Tico."

"Poe. I'm Poe Dameron."

" _Beep! Zee! Beop! Zip! [Acquaintance Mari Kosan, I am BB-8!]"_

"I'm Finn...Finn."

"I am Luke Skywalker."

The Wookies stopped in their tracks and BB-8 who was following at their heels was sent to the forest floor after they bumped into them so abruptly. The teen looked curiously at their grandmother and who Finn presumed was their older brother, Yoshua, he remembered. 

"Skywalker? _The_ Skywalker?" the greying woman questioned and smirked when Luke nodded his head in answer, 

"Well this got a lot more interesting...Oh Cal...what have you gotten yourself into?" 

Finn and Rey's eyes met as they walked along. Luke and Mari talked quietly at the front of the group, with the Wookies along with BB-8 at the back, the child chasing the droid along, the two laughing occasionally. Well what even the droid equivalent of laughing was, BB-8 was sure doing it. Rose and Poe were too busy pointing out flowers and creatures they could see to notice Yoshua glare at them occasionally. He kept looking at the lightsabers hung on their belts, and he walked too close to Luke, with his rifle clutched too tightly for the two Padawans to relax completely.

But soon they made it to the village and the group split up. The Wookies headed towards a spread of wooden huts close to water's edge after a brief word with Mari, and Yoshua followed them, but not before he cast a final, glaring look at the group.

Rey looked around at the village and was a little surprised to see more humans than the three that had come here with them. There were older men gutting fish and laughing at whatever their Wookie companions were growling out. Young women crushing flowers in mortar and pestels, releasing brightly coloured pastes, which Rey could only assume were used as dyes. 

Poe nudged Finn and the two of them looked up together, at the string of treehouses high up in the trees, with bridges connecting them, suspended by thick vines wrapped around even thicker tree branches. Finn gasped in awe as he noticed brightly coloured lanterns being lit one by one along the bridges and treehouses and Poe smiled fondly at his excitement. Rose was at Rey's side and the girl couldn't help but point out the ship half buried in between the roots of a particularly large tree to the engineer. It was something Rey had seen a lot of Jakku, it was an old Imperial craft. But Rey had never seen one in the desert covered in flowers, so many different coloured flowers.

"I have sent Shyvva and Hayhh to retrieve Tarfful. They may be a while, Tarfful's home is deeper into the trees than the borders of our village go. But while you are waiting, please join us for dinner. It has been...a long time since we have had guests, we would like that very much," the woman said sadly, and Rey could see her mask slip ever so slightly.

"Of course," Luke accepted, and Mari's smile returned, even if it was small.

"Excellent! I hope you have large appetites, serving sizes here don't come in small."

As night fell, the group dined on fish and vegetables native to the planet, that none of them, Rey and Finn especially, had ever tasted before. Tarfful arrived just as dusk broke, just in time as the meal was being served and he ate with them, with Mari acting as their interpreter. Rey noticed Yoshua sitting in a group not too far away, watching out of the corner of his eye When their bowls were empty, the rest of the Wookies in the village dispersed back into their homes or to the further edges of the settlement to leave their Cheiftan some privacy to speak with their visitors.

Poe let BB-8 run off with their new friend, the teen from earlier, who still had no name in Rey's head, as she hadn't had an opportunity to ask. The droid beeped happily and sped off to chase the teen around the lake, who laughed as loudly as they had earlier.

" _Why do you want to know about Cal Kestis?_ " Mari translated Tarfful's words after the Wookie spoke.

Rey looked at Luke to answer. The Jedi out down his drink and pulled his lightsaber from its holster. He placed it on the table in front of him, and gestured at it.

"This, this doesn't make me a Jedi. Doesn't make anyone a Jedi. Same thing goes for knowing everything about the Force. Just because I am one, doesn't mean I know everything. We need him to answer questions we don't have the answers for. And we need help. Not just to help train Rey and Finn and whatever other people we come across in the war. We need him in the war, to help us fight the First Order. If he was willing to help us before, like he helped you, with the Empire, then he might be willing to help us again."

The Wookie considered Luke's words for a moment, almost for a beat too long, that sent Rose's nerves on fire.

" _He talked a lot of you after the War, Master Skywalker. Cal is a dear friend to us, and he trusted you....So I will offer the same trust to you. I will help you."_

The whole group collectively let out a sigh they didn't know they were holding in.

"So you will tell us where he is?" Finn asked, looking directly at the Wookie.

" _I will help you find him, yes._ "

"Why does that sound like you don't know where he is either?" Poe wondered aloud worriedly, and Rey immediately became just as concerned.

Turns out, that was exactly what Tarfful had meant. He, nor Mari or _anyone_ on Kashyyyk had seen the Jedi in twenty years. Twenty whole years, Rey could not wrap her head around it.

The Wookies returned to the village and struck up their campfires as soon as their discussions has concluded. Tarfful and Luke walked into a hut to continue a conversation when the noise grew to loud to hear each other. Rose and Poe quickly made friends with some of the younger humans in the village and were quickly brought into a very energetic game of cards. Rey wasn't completely sure there wasn't a wildly inappropriate amount of gambling happening over there, but a quick look to Poe guaranteed that no matter what, he'd never bet on the Falcon, so at least if they left Kashyyyk with no clothes, they'd still have a ship.

She spotted Finn being chastised by BB-8, about what, she couldn't tell from a distance but it made Finn's reactions all the more entertaining. 

Rey claimed a small log beside an empty firepit to think for a moment alone. Twenty years...How does a person go missing for that long? Was he even still alive? He must be older than Luke to have survived the Clone Wars...But then again, Luke really wasn't that old, no matter how much Poe joked about it.

"Relax, my dear, I can hear you thinking from across the village," Rey looked up at the sudden voice but let her shoulders drop when she realised it was just Mari. The old woman tilted her head in question at the log and Rey moved over to let her have room to sit down.

"Credit for your thoughts?" she asked the Padawan when Rey went immediately back to staring into the flames. She blinked once to jerk herself out of her stupor.

"Sorry...I just...What if...What if we can't find him? What if we do...and he says no? Or we find him and he's dead..."

"He's not dead, I know that much," Mari answered solemnly, and Rey raised an eyebrow at her.

"How do you know? You haven't seen him in decades.."

"I can feel him...In the Force," she added in afterthought and she threw a hand up towards the stars Rey could see peaking in between the gaps in the thick leaf canopy above.

"You can? Are you two...linked?" Rey questioned, but didn't quite have the word for it.

"No, no, nothing like that. I'm no Force user, no Jedi. But I feel the Force, in everything, living or inanimate. Cal...he's so unbelievablely strong a presence in the Force, I will worry the day I can no longer feel him."

"Why can't I? Or Finn, or even Luke?" Rey inquired and Mari smiled at her childlike curiosity.

"I can see what something looks like in the Force but I only _feel_ things without trying that I forge a connection with. I feel Tarfful, Yoshua and Wrowen. I feel Cal. I feel everyone in this village, and the village itself. But I'm not sure what it's like to be a Jedi and try and sense other Jedis...I have heard of connections in the Force between two people, that they can feel each other across the galaxy. But those connections, you're born with them, they can't be made, they can't be forged, not truly."

Rey let her disappointment show for a split second but the woman caught it anyway. 

"Don't be upset. These connections are one in a hundred million, I'm not even sure when the last recorded one was."

A laugh interrupted their discussions and the two women looked over at Finn, who was at his own fire pit, now cross-legged on the floor, facing the Mari's grandchild, the space between them covered in in small, wooden discs with symbols painted on them.

"You look like him," Mari commentes and Rey laughed at the unexpected words.

"Not physically, of course. But to me, you're cut of the same cloth, or Force, whatever you want to go with. You look like the same," the woman closed her eyes and Rey watched her face become the model of peaceful concentration.

"What do we look like?"

"Fire. Not consuming. But not as small as the fire pits either. Somewhere in between. Like a burn line, to stop a forest fire. A shield. And the breeze that comes along to fan the flames, warm, comforting. Which confuses me..."

"How so?"

Mari opened her eyes and grabbed Rey's hand in her own. The Padawan looked into the older woman's eyes and was surprised to see they were shiny with tears. Rey squeezed the woman's hand reassuringly and felt the air shift around them.

"Because you feel like him too. He's the ocean, in my mind. Serene, peaceful, but powerful, dangerous, if needs be. It's strange to me how water can feel like fire."

"I think it's stranger that there's a magical force that lets us move things with our minds, you know?" Rey offered a smile and the old woman laughed.

"That it is, that it is."

Finn blinked. One moment there was just flames in front of him, the next, BB-8's new friend was sitting in front of him.

"Hi," Finn smiled, recovering quickly after his temporary shock.

"Hi," the teen smiles back, showing all of their perfectly white teeth.

"I'm Finn."

"Wrowen, that's my name! I chose it myself!" the teen declared, and smiled proudly at that fact.

"Really?" Finn grinned at the infectious positivity that was rolling off of his companion,

"That's really cool. My friend helped me chose my name."

"Woah..that's super cool! Who?"

"You see that man over there? With the curly hair? Him. His name's Poe, he's my best friend and I helped him with something and so he helped me find a name in return."

"Ooo...Wait...Did that mean you didn't have a name before?" the teen asked curiously but Finn didn't even feel a little intruded on, with how innocently they asked.

"No, I didn't. I was taken when I was a small child, by some really bad people. And they didn't give any of us names. I think I used to have a name but I was too small to remember what it is now."

"That sucks so bad...They sound really mean. Like super duper bad. I'm sorry."

Finn laughed at insult Wrowen came up with for the First Order.

"Yeah, they did suck, really bad. But I'm away from them now. All thanks to Poe."

Wrowen was silent for a moment as they scrunched up their face in thought.

"Can I read your palm? My mamma taught me how."

"Uh...okay?" Finn replied, confused as to how someone could read a palm.

Wrowen grinned and grabbed Finn's left hand, and tilted in towards the light of the flames before they ran their pointer finger down the lines on his palm. 

"Your life line is super long... Like I don't think I've seen anyone that's going to live as long as you. You're going to be healthy too...except for a weird crack that happens really early on...you must experience a serious injury at some point."

Finn felt the scar on his back tingle as Wrowen said that, but continued to listen to them.

"You're going to be married too! Happily! And I think... two children. Yep! You're going to have two children, because that's how long that line is on my mamma's palm too."

"Well I've kinda already got one kid, BB-8 is basically a child, they act like one," the droid, who has been silently observing them from beside the fire beeped angrily at him and Finn chuckled,

"Kinda proving my point here, Beebs."

"Hmm well I don't think I'm good enough at it yet to know whether the line means droid children or not..." the teen looked down at their hands in disappointment. 

"It's okay, I still think you did a really good job, thank you," Finn praised and Wrowen's grin returned.

"Really!?"

"Yep!"

"Awesome! Do you want me to tell your future too? I have my own set of rune stones!"

Finn pushed himself off the log and sat on the dirt, facing Wrowen,

"You know what? Of course, I'd love you too."

"Sweet! You're so cool!"

Luke was asleep already when they entered the cabin the Wookies said they could use for the night. Rey and Rose headed into one room, that had two separate single pallet beds. Finn and Poe entered the only remaining room, expecting to find the same thing.

But there was not.

There was a couple of crates used for storage, there was a lantern hung in every corner of the room, there was a bedside table. And there was one, singular, double bed in the middle of the room. 

Poe was glad the lanterns were turned off as they entered, otherwise he was sure Finn could see how red his face had become when he spotted the bed. 

"Ah so this is..." Finn began, in a whisper.

"Not ideal?" Poe offered a weak smile.

"Yeah. No big deal though, it looks big enough for the both of us...U-Unless you want me to sleep on the floor?" Finn pondered and Poe didn't even notice the man's stutter in haste to reply. 

"You are not sleeping on the floor, if anyone has to, it should be me. But like you said, it's big enough for the both us, we can just share," Poe tried his best to be nonchalant about the whole thing, as he sat down of the edge of the bed and began removing his boots, 

"Just don't hog all the blankets on me."

Finn laughed quietly into his hand,

"Of course, of course. I won't upset the heat freak goblin that is sleepy Poe Dameron." 

"Damn right," Poe grinned.

The two removed their shoes and overshirts, and got under the covers, facing towards each other, with barely eight inches of space separating them.

"Uh, goodnight," Poe mumbled and quickly turned away from Finn, realising that he has severely overestimated how large the bed actually was.

"...Goodnight, Poe," Finn replied after a moment's silence and turned away from the man too.

A moment or two past. With both their eyes closed, the two turned back towards one another, the other unknowing of this. 

Sleep soon came.


End file.
